What Audiences’ Reactions Indicate For Digital-age Marketing Objectives
#TwitterFont was trending recently and created a buzz with its revamped look. Users flooded to the microblogging platform and expressed their unhappiness about the sudden changes to their newsfeed.
However, this wasn’t the first time! We have seen instances like these before. Over the past few years, various leading brands have made changes in their key elements. From the Air India Maharaja and Google to Amazon, Frooti, etc. changes in their logo, icon, or brand packaging have rendered significant impact on their customers. The reactions of the users have usually been a mixed bag of emotions!
From a marketing perspective, this spectrum of irritation that we witness is a clear indication of how deeply brands connect to people. However, for us to learn from it, we first have to assess the background of this irritable reaction.
Brand Changes Leading To Disruptions In User’s Behaviour
Instagram, Google, and Amazon changed their app icons and received a lot of negative feedback for such modifications. This is because our brains have developed a connection with the visual language that we are accustomed to. This implies that we develop a scrolling habit to the extent that we have fixed scrolling patterns and we are aware of all the elements, their placements and characteristics on the newsfeed.
Any change in colour, logo, or icon creates confusion, disrupts our scrolling, and slows down our usage. Hence, users tend to disconnect from the brands and end up feeling irritable.
Brand Changes Making Users Uncomfortable
Changes in brand, for instance, Twitter's font change, technically aren't disruptive for our daily lives. However, they create a cognitive cue that makes our brain stumble. The sudden changes have a significant psychological impact that makes our subconscious mind question the way we process and perceive the digital world. Our mind constantly gives us the message that something is amiss, that something is not the usual!
This could be well compared to a situation in our home if a piece of furniture that was at the exact same spot for the last 10-20 years was suddenly shifted to a new location in the house. We might not be using it daily but this change makes us feel uncomfortable.
This is the reason why font changes, small logo changes, or modifications in layout and themes receive feedback and response. The human body does not like the difference in its subliminal cues, and eventually sends out messages of distress.
Change Is The Only Constant But Is Usually Not Welcomed
Human beings hate change. We prefer living in our comfort zones and become habituated to things and patterns the way they have always been.
Similarly, speaking about the digital world, we tend to be associated and familiar with the brands that we either grew up with or the brands that have been a part of our lives for quite a while now. What often goes unnoticed is that customers tend to consider these brands as an integral part of their lives. They are no less than a friend, confidante, or a family member for the consumers.
Hence, any change in their communication or product designing, for instance, Air India’s Maharaja or modifications in Frooti’s packaging leads to unfamiliarity and discontent amongst the customers. Eventually, gaps are created and the well-knit connection might develop cracks as well.
The Twitter font change highlights the disconnect very well. Despite the massively cluttered social space and fast-paced lives of the users, people could spare time to discuss a font change and express their disappointment that barely made a difference in their routine lives. Their discontent was to such an extent that they even made memes about it!
Learnings For The New-age Marketers From This Insight
These responses are a testimony of the fact that people feel connected to the brands and consider them as an essential part of their lives. Hence, as digital marketers, we should understand that we are dealing with not just a customer base for the brands but with humans who feel, express, and react.
The ROI of digital marketing campaigns in the present times is usually measured by the sales generated, the number of likes and comments received the engagement garnered, or the impressions that were secured. Our measurement parameters include just the quantitative impact and not the qualitative impact. The latter refers to the bond that the brands are able to foster with consumers and the love that they receive from their customers. These are not easily measured, nor considered as a success parameter for campaigns.
Hence, the need of the hour for the new-age digital marketers is that instead of just focusing our efforts on creating awareness or generating sales, we have to cater to these bonds as well. We have to bring about innovations in our strategies keeping into consideration these friendships and relationships amongst the consumers and the brands.
Our KPIs, therefore, should start evolving to metrics that help measure friendship more than momentary engagement or monetary benefits. Furthermore, our digital marketing activities and plans should be conceptualized in a manner that they help connect the audience to brands effectively, efficiently, and effortlessly just like a birthday party would for a group of children!
The Bottom Line: If the audience is as invested in our brands’ smallest changes, then it’s time to pay attention to that investment in ways that look beyond likes and followers. This is our cue to harness the power of this connection and convert it into a fruitful relationship that goes beyond the usual brand-consumer bond!
The Author is Aashna Iyer, Account Head & Strategy, BC Web Wise
